Combined engine and compressor.



H. T. HERB.

COMBINED ENGINE AND COMPRESSOR.

APPLICATION FILED ocr. 12. 1908.

Patented Nov. 23, 1915.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

WITN ESSES H. T. HERR.

COMBINED ENGINE AND COMPRESSOR.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 12, 19085 INVNTOR J M Att'y.

HERBERT T. HERE, 01'! DENVER, COLORADO.

-GOIVIIBINEZD ENGINE AND COMPRESSOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 23, 1915.

Driginal application filed May 14, 1908, Serial No. 432,881. Divided and this application filed October 12,

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Hnnnnn'r T. HERB, a citizen of the United States, residing at Denver, in the county of'Denver and State of Colorado, have invented new and useful Improvements in Combined Engines and Compressors, of which the following is a' specification.

This invention relates to internal combustion engines and more particularly to that type covered by my prior pending application, Serial No. 482,881, filed May 14, 1908, and of which this application is a division.

One of the objects of this-present invention is to provide imprbved means for compressing air for use in scavenging the cylinders of the engine.

Another object is to effect amore thorough clearing out of the products of combustion from the cylinders. And still another object is to provide a .combined engine and compressor construction in which the air to beused for fuel injecting, starting, and for other purposes may be compressed by means of the engine pistons without the necessity of additional moving parts.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of a threecylinder engine embodying my improvements; Fig. '2 a transverse section taken through one of the engine cylinders; and Fig. 3 a horizontal section of one of the engine cylinders taken substantially on the line 0cm of Fig. 2.

The invention is illustrated as comprising a plurality of cylinders, in the present instance, three. These cylinders are designated by the reference numeral 4 and are supported upon suitable crank cases which may be separate castings or which-.may be formed in a single casting. The shaft 5 is journaled in suitable bearings in the crank case. The shaft receives its motion from the pistons 1 connected to said shaft by the piston rods 6.

Each cylinder 4 is provided with exhaust ports 2 which exhaust ;through outlets 3. By reference to Fig. 2 it will be observed that the piston 1 in each cylinder .is larger in diameter at one end than at the other. The larger end of the piston is adapted to compress air in the crank case by drawing the air through a port normally closed by the valve 107 on the compression stroke of the piston and force air through a port normally stroke of the piston.

Serial No. 457,231.

closed by the valve 108 upon the power The air passed through the port closed by the valve 108 will enter the chamber 109 through the port 110, said port 110 communicating with a valve chamber 111 normally closed by valve 112 so that when the exhaust ports 2 are uncovered the pressure on one side of the valve 112 will be atmospheric pressure and the compressed air may enter the cylinder 4 to scavenge it. This invention also contemplates utilizing the piston within the cyllnder for compressing air to be subsequently used for-certain purposes, as for example, for initially starting the motor. On the first cylinder is an air strainer 95 adapted to permlt air to enter a chamber 96 and by unseating a check valve 97 pass into the clearance spaces 98 and then to a cylinder 99. In the first cylinder is a discharge valve 100 permitting communication with a cavity 101 which in turn communicates with a port 102 leading to an intercooler 103. Ports 113 and 114 from the second cylinder communicate with the intercooler and these ports communicate with a chamber 116 through the chamber 104, the chamber 114 being provided with valves corresponding to valves 97 and 100. The chamber 116 also communicates with an intercooler 105 through the port 117. The third cylinder is provided with ports 118 and 119 leading into the head 120 through the chamber 106, the chamber 119 being provided with valves corresponding to valves 97 and 100. The head 120 is provided with a passage 121 communicating with a high pressure reservoir A. It is to be'understood that the cylinders 99, 104 and 106 are of decreasing capacity to provide for series compression. In Fig. 3 I have shown a sectional view on the line X X of Fig. 2. This sectional view is taken through the first cylinder and shows the strainer 95. Views'taken through the remaining cylinders on the line X X would show the same construction as Fig. 2 except that instead of the strainer 95the cylinder v shown. On the upward stroke of the piston,

this air is compressed in space'99 until it reaches sufficient pressure to unseat dischargevalve ,100, when it flows into cavity 101, and from there through port 102 into intercooler 103. This gives compression from atmospheric pressure,- to say 100 pounds per square inch per -revolution of the engine. Air is taken from intercooler 103 through similar ports 113 into chamber 114 in intermediate head 115 on the second engine, passing a suitable admission valve similar to that previously described in the first stage as taken intothe space 104, and on the upward stroke of the piston is compressed until its pressure is suiiicient to unseat a discharge valve similar to that previously described in the first stage, discharging its air through chamber 116 and port 117 into intercooler 105; from intercooler 105 air is taken at the pressure of say 300 pounds per square inch, in the same manner as previously described in the other engines, through ports 118 and 119 in intermediate head 120 into the space 106 in the third engine onthe downward stroke of the piston, and on the upward stroke this air is compressed to say 800 pounds per square inch, being finally discharged through a suitable discharge valve into chamber 121 and the high pressure reservoir A. It will also be seen that on the upward stroke of each piston the displacement of the piston causes air to unseat receiving valves into thecrank case as shown in Fig. 2 at 107. On the downward stroke of the piston these admission valves close, and discharge valves 108 open, and by suitable port in the casting discharge the compression of the downward stroke into chamber 109 or into chamber 111 where the pressure of chamber 109' is always present above valve 112 in the cylinder heads. The downward stroke of the piston compressing air into 109 will cause the opening of valve 112 when exhaust ports 2 are opened by piston 1 allowing the compressed air from chamber 109 to flow through the cylinder and drive the burnt gases through the exhaust port, filling cylinder 4 with pure air on the completion of each down stroke, which is compressed on the up stroke to the ignition compression previously described.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a combined internal combustion engine and multi-stage compressor, the combination of a multiple number-of cylinders formed to accommodate diiferential pistons, a difi'erential piston mounted in each cylinder and dividing the cylinder into a combustion chamber, located at one end thereof, and an annular compression chamber, valve means for controlling communication between the annular compression chambers of the cylinders, whereby the annular chambers of all the cylinders cooperate to form a multi-stage compressor, a crank shaft com mon to all of said pistons, a multi-chamber crank case inclosing said shaft and into which air is drawn and compressed by the operation of at least one of said pistons,and a valve between said case and the combustion chambers of each cylinder for delivering air to the combustion chambers of the cylinders.

2. In a combined internal combustion engine and multi-stage compressor, the combination of a plurality of cylinders open at one end and formed to accommodate differential pistons, a differential piston located in each cylinder and dividing the cylinder into a combustion chamber located at one end thereof and an annular compression chamber, valve means for controlling communica-' operation of at least one of said pistons and. valve means for controlling the delivery of air to and the discharge of air from said crank case.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set by hand.

HERBERT T. HERB.

Witnesses:

S. M. BoNNEvIER, G. P. LINDSLEY. 

